“His name is Marsden. Not Mars. I’ll need for you to change that on the paperwork, or I refuse to pay it.” Mr. Farley put the paperwork back in the file and stared at her. “Did you hear me? No one calls him that but his mother. No one that we associate with would even know him by that name.”
“Mrs. Wilkerson, I’m not sure what else I can do for you, but the matter of Miss Wilkerson is taken care of.” Penelope asked for the bill. “As I was trying to tell you, everything has been arranged. The bill has been taken care of, and I think we’re finished here.”
“I want to see the bill.” He didn’t move, and that pissed her off more than being set up on this wild goose chase. “You will hand over that bill so that I can mark off the things that I’m not paying for. You do it right now. I’m not in the mood to be fucked around with on this. Not today. Marsden had no right whatsoever to make arrangements.”
“And why is that, Penelope? Do you think that I’m not old enough to know how to make arrangements for my own mother? I can, and I am, I assure you.” She glared at Marsden when he walked into the room, where she was trying to talk to the funeral director. “Mr. Farley, this was my mom’s favorite dress, and there are shoes and her underthings in the bag. Thank you for suggesting something that she loved. I’ve also thought about the other things that you asked me, and if you’re finished here, I’ll be in the lobby to speak to you.”
“I believe we are finished, aren’t we, Mrs. Wilkerson?”
Penelope started to speak to tell them both that she wanted to know what else Marsden was planning, but Mr. Farley left her there in favor of Marsden. She was just ready to stomp out of the room to find him, to demand that he let her see the bill when she realized that it was right there. Just as she was reaching for it, someone cleared their throat. Looking at the young lady there, Penelope huffed when she asked her if she could help her with something.
“I demand to see how much the bill is for the funeral.” The woman told her that she’d have to come back when Mr. Farley had time, as he was the one that was working with Mr. Wilkerson. “I’m his aunt, and I want to know how much I’m going to owe before I get hit with a huge bill. Whoever you are, I suggest that you do as I say or there will be hell to pay.”
“Well, I guess it really sucks to be you today, doesn’t it? Uncle Lance asked me to make sure you got out just fine. I don’t think he meant for me to kick you out, but if you touch anything on his desk, I might be tempted. Now, it’s time that you packed up your stuff and left.” She glared at her. “Lady, I could care less about that look you have. I know you and the rest of the Wilkersons. You don’t scare me as badly as you thought you could.”
“You should know better than to speak to your betters like that, young lady. I’m going to report you to your uncle, and we’ll just see how he deals with you.” The woman—Penelope had no idea who she was—just smiled, a vicious shark-like smile. “Just between us, give me the bill, and I won’t have to tell anyone what a monumental bitch you are. If it helps, I’ll give you five dollars so that you can have some money of your own.”
“Five bucks, huh? No thanks. As for me being a monumental bitch, everyone knows I’m just that. In fact, I’ve been told that I’m more of a bitch than you are. Imagine that.” The woman picked up the file that Penelope wanted and smiled again. “It’s time you leave here. By your own two feet or me shoving you out the door. Either way, it’s fine by me. More fun my way, but I don’t care so long as you’re gone.”
“I demand that you at least tell me when the funeral is. We’ve not heard a thing. It’s not right to make arrangements without telling your family.” Penelope tried to smile at her in a reassuring way, but it didn’t feel as if it worked. The woman said nothing. “Damn it, I’m never going to use this funeral home again.”
“Since you never have, especially not this time, I’m sure it’s no sweat off my uncle’s balls. You know what those are, don’t you? It’s rumored that you and the other Wilkerson women carry your husbands’ around in a jar in your purse.” The woman winked at her, and Penelope wanted to hit her. “It is equally rumored that you women must have been impregnated by a saint to have sons that are absolutely nothing like you are. It’s time to go. Or I call the police because you’re trespassing.”
Penelope found herself on the side driveway before she could think to argue more. Not that she thought it would have done any good. The young woman had to be an ex-con or something to think that she could treat her kind like she had. Pulling out her phone when she got to her car, she used the special line. They’d ruin this funeral home in no time.
“He told you that? That Marsden had made the arrangements yesterday? How is that even possible? I mean, Holly just died yesterday.” That was another thing that had been pointed out to her. Holly didn’t just die—she was murdered by a drunk driver. Penelope didn’t bother telling Eita that. She was pissed enough. “Well, you can bet that I’m going to have a thing or two to say to him when we get there for the funeral. Were you at least able to make arrangements to have it on Monday evening? I have so much to do on Monday for this thing that I have to pay extra to have my hair done.”
“I wasn’t even able to see the bill to take care of it. All he kept telling me was that it had been taken care of. Like that’s an answer to our dilemma to getting it paid. I’m not paying any more than I have to on it. If he’s gotten her fifty dozen red roses, then he’s going to fucking work that off by mowing yards or whatever he does. I’m not footing the bill for a funeral that no one cares about. Holly did not run in the same circles as we did, so it’s doubtful that any of our friends will be there to be impressed by his bullshit.” They all agreed. “Well, since I hit a dead end, was anyone else able to get anything on their list done? The young woman that I told you about, she didn’t seem like a person that would be working in a funeral home. She pretended to know me, which didn’t fly, as you can guess. I just realized that Marsden didn’t call me aunt either. Just by my given name. What does he think that is going to get him? Not in good with me. You’d think that he’d be buttering us all up now that it’s just him footing the bills at that house they lived in.”
They discussed the trials of getting anything done until Salma spoke. “There is something fishy going on, ladies. I’ve just left the bursar’s office at the hospital, and they won’t let me see the bill for Holly. Said that I needed to be next of kin. I tried to tell them that I was Holly’s sister-in-law, which I really hate admitting, and he told me that I wasn’t considered next of kin. I did laugh at him for that. Because for as long as I’ve been a part of this family, we’ve never considered her kin either. Her or Marsden. What do you suppose is going on here? That Marsden is trying his best to shut us out? I don’t know. Now that I’ve said it out loud, I realize how absurd that sounds. What does he think is going to happen when he starts getting hit with these bills all at one time? Then, I suppose, he’ll have to come begging to us for help. Oh, I like that idea. Him finally on his hands and knees because his sainted mother didn’t leave him enough money for pizzas.”
Penelope didn’t like that he was just one step ahead of them either. She wondered if her son Shawn was telling him things, but she’d not seen her son as yet. Well, he’d better be making it back for this funeral, or there will be hell to pay. She wasn’t going to make excuses for him not being there like she’d had to at the annual Christmas party.
Looking at the funeral home, then the street where the only clothing store in town was located, she watched as her son came out of the place with several bags over his arm, along with his cousin Booker. Telling the women that she had to go, Penelope walked to where they were and jerked her son around to face her. In a tight hiss at him, she spoke to him through clenched teeth.
“What the blue fuck are you doing? You know better than to purchase anything from locally owned stores. And don’t think I won’t let your mother know either, Booker. Why are you forever
trying to embarrass us?” Shawn looked around, and so did she. “Look at them, staring at us. See what you’ve done?”
“The only person that is causing a scene is you, Mother.” She drew back her hand to slap him, as she always did when he acted out. “You do, and I’ll never speak to you or go home again. Of that, you can be assured for as long as we both live.”
The threat—because to her, that was exactly what it was, a threat—had the desired effect. She put her hand back on her hip and glared at him. When he looked to her left, she just knew that she was going to see more of the boys when an elderly lady cleared her throat behind her.
“I can get them from you, Shawn. I wanted to thank you and Booker for helping an old lady out.” Her face heated up to almost volatile when she realized what her sons were doing. Not that she condoned them being around the townspeople any more than she did shopping at their stores, but everyone there knew what she didn’t. Her sons were being nice. “You should be proud of them, but I know you won’t be, Penelope Wilkerson. These are good boys despite you trying to make them the contrary.”
“My name is Mrs. Wilkerson to you.” The moment that the words left her mouth, Penelope was embarrassed again. That was when the others that had gathered around them started laughing. Even the boys were laughing. “Get your asses home now. I’ll speak to you when—”
“No.” She looked at Shawn when he told her no. Penelope didn’t think he’d ever said that to her before. “We’re helping Mars with errands he has to run today. Mrs. Frank here was just leaving when we were, so we helped her out.”
“What do you mean, helping Marsden? And it’s not Mars. I told you and him how much I hate that nickname. Are you paying for the funeral? If you’ve lent him so much as a quarter, you’ll answer to your father for this, Shawn Wilkerson. I will not have you—”
“Lend him money? No, Mother dearest, there was no reason to lend Mars money. As for answering to my father for things I’m doing? That’s not going to happen either. In the event that it might have slipped your mind, I’m a grown man making my own way in the world, and haven’t asked you for shit in—”
Her hand across his face was there before she thought about what he’d said to her before. Penelope didn’t believe that he’d do such a thing to her. It would embarrass her to no end. When he walked away without another word, she looked at Booker.
“You touch me, and I won’t walk away. I’ll tear you apart.” When he left her standing there too, Penelope had to wonder what was going on with these people. She was just going to have to have a talk with Hank, Shawn’s father. And she was going to tell Josiah about his son Booker too. Enough was enough.
All the way back to her car, she felt the eyes of the others on her. This was her son’s fault for treating her this way. She wasn’t going to allow him to get away with it either. Sitting in her car, she did have a moment of thought about how he said he’d been helping Marsden. Like he’d been talking to him without her approval.
Penelope was going to put her foot down, starting now. There was no reason for them, all of them, to be disrespectable to their parents. She’d get on their hotline as soon as she got home, and she’d make sure that they were all on the same page. Then she’d tell them that after the funeral, she was going to make sure that Marsden never came to their home, spoke to, or saw any of them again. Not that he did now, but that was beside the point. He was no longer welcome to be called a Wilkerson either. Her husband used to be a fine attorney. Penelope would have him work up something that made it so he had to change his last name. That would work. He’d love it too. Yes, by God, she was going to start putting Marsden in his place.
Chapter 3
Abby made her way to the upper floors of the funeral home to finish up her laundry after Penny left. She only called Penelope that when she was alone. Everyone knew how much she hated nicknames.
Abby was both glad and sad that she’d have to get back to her wash. It had piled up quite a bit while she’d been working, and her Uncle Lance was kind enough to not just let her live there until she found something else, but told her to use the washer and dryer to her heart’s content. Abby laughed about that conversation.
“You do know that no one in the world likes to do laundry as much as you do, Uncle Lance.” He laughed with her. “I have quite a bit—I’ve been gone for a while. Are you sure that it won’t bother any of your services?”
“I don’t have one in until Saturday. Holly Wilkerson was killed the other day. The sweetest, most generous woman that I ever met.” Abby told him that she’d loved her as well. “She’ll be sorely missed. Her son is all grown up now, but he still loved his mom. Worshiped her. You should have seen him when he came here to make her arrangements. It hurt my heart to see him so broken like he was.”
Abby knew all the Wilkersons, the adults as well as their children. When she’d been growing up around here, she didn’t know there was a sixth Wilkerson until she used to hang out with North all the time. Hearing that the adult men had a sister had surprised her to no end. Of course, after finding out about Holly, she went to talk to her uncle about her.
He’d told her of the missing girl and rape. Uncle Lance told her too that not one of the Wilkersons had lifted a hand to find her. And he’d never been able to find anything in the paper about her being taken or found. Uncle Lance had told her that he thought that the elder Wilkerson had done that. He had the money to do just about anything.
After Holly was found alive and taken to the hospital, not one of them had gone to see her except for her father that he knew of. After that, Uncle Lance told her, they’d treated her like she was nothing more than a bug under their boots. Then he told her about Mars.
“She raised him all on her own, she did. Nicest boy you could ever hope to meet, too. None of them cousins of his treated him the way their parents did, thankfully. I believe some of them to this day go to their Aunt Holly’s home when they’re not busy more than they do their parents’ home.”
It had been true what her uncle told her. She’d see them at the movies with Holly, and during the holidays recently, they’d been at her house again. Abby was sure that their parents had no idea. Had they known, they would have put a stop to that immediately. There wouldn’t have been fraternization with the low lifes, she thought that they’d say.
Abby didn’t feel bad for talking to Penny the way that she had. Knowing that she didn’t remember her made it all the more fun for her. It wouldn’t hurt her uncle’s business, because this time next year he was selling his practice to a much younger man, he’d told her. There was a man coming in to work with him starting in October, and then he’d purchase it from her uncle to take over. Uncle Lance had plans. He said that he wanted to see the world, like she did.
Just as Abby cleared the steps, she saw her uncle and Mars taking flowers to the big chapel. There were a great many of them too. Putting down her basket full of dirty clothing, the last of it thankfully, she picked up two of the pretty vases and took them to the chapel.
“Oh, my goodness.” The room, the biggest one in the funeral home, was packed with flowers and their lovely scents. There were so many planters that Uncle Lance had brought in an extra table that he’d covered to place them on. “These are beautiful.”
“Thanks, Abby.” She turned and looked at Mars when he said her name. “You don’t know me, but I feel like I know you. Your uncle has spoken of very little else since you got out on your own, so I feel that I know a great deal about you. And North, he thinks you’re wonderful. I’m Marsden Wilkerson. Everyone, but my relatives call me Mars.”
“Gabriella Farley—everyone calls me Abby.” They shook hands. “I’m so sorry about your mother. She was the nicest person I ever met. She helped me out of a few jams when I was growing up.”
“You and a great many others. I’m glad that she could be there for you. She was for me too.” Nodding, they made their wa
y back to the door and picked up more vases of flowers. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with all of these when this is over. I’m not sure I can even get the planters in our home, there are so many of them.”
“I can take pictures of them for you with the cards.” Her face heated up. She wasn’t one to just jump in to help others. “I did it for a large funeral once. There were just too many to keep track of, so I was asked to take pictures of them for the family. I don’t mind doing that. As for what to do with them when you’re finished? Donate them back to the florist and have them redo them for nursing homes and shut-ins. Sometimes the only time they get any flowers is when they’re given some from things like this that has more than enough to share.”
“Thank you. I’ll do that.” He picked up two more vases of flowers. “I’d really appreciate it if you could find the time to get some pictures. I have to do all the thank you notes, and I don’t want to forget anyone. They were nice enough to send them, I don’t want them to think that Mom raised an ill-mannered child.”
“It’s doubtful that anyone would think that of Holly. Like I said before, she was the nicest person around. Nothing like your aunts.” Mars laughed. “I had a run-in with Penny today. She’s a bitch, did you know that?”
“Yes, I’m well aware of her antics. You call her Penny? I might have to do that as well. She doesn’t like that everyone calls me Mars. Maybe it’ll change her mind.” They both pretended to look thoughtful about that, and then Mars spoke again. “Nah. She’ll just get pissier at me. If that’s even possible. I’m surprised that they’ve not made me change my last name.”
“You won’t, will you?” He shook his head as he picked up the rest of the flowers. “None of the women are all that nice if you didn’t already know that. When she was in today to get the amount of the bill, Uncle Lance gave her just enough run around so that when I saw her looking to snatch it, I gave her hell.”
Marsden (Wilkerson Dynasty Book 1) Page 3
